Generally speaking, this invention relates to a retail package for frangible particulate material, such as breakfast cereal. More specifically it relates to a package which enhances the separation of the crumbs or fines from the more appetizing portion of the cereal and traps the crumbs so they will not recombine with the more appetizing portion when it is poured from the package.
In the prior art there are numerous examples of sifting and straining devices for separating chaff, dust, fines, crumbs and liquid from particulate material. However, prior to this invention no one has developed a retail package for frangible particulate material which enhances the separation of an undesirable finer fraction of particulate material from a larger more desirable fraction while the package is being handled in an upright position. In view of the prior art it may seem obvious to provide a screen member or apertured grid in the bottom of a container, but to date no one has done so. Furthermore, it is not obvious, in the absence of the current disclosure, to include an imperforate ramp section that is inclined towards a screening section. This is particularly true in view of the fact that the ramp section serves a dual purpose of causing the finer particulate matter to gravitate toward the screening section when the container is jostled in an upright position and also provides a cul-de-sac or trap into which the finer fraction, which has passed through the screening section, slides when the package is tilted to pour out the larger particulate size fraction.